Feels on Turning 30!
Well, I’m officially a 30 year old!
It wasn’t what I expected, and it was absolutely one of my favorite birthdays I’ve ever had. It felt so good to enter a new decade surrounded by so much love and happiness!
I ate well, was totally pampered, relaxed a lot, and had tons of fun! I sipped wine for a week straight, laughed for days, and danced the night away. I sang the happy birthday song way too many times… and no matter how awkward I was beaming with joy!
I wasn’t planning on sharing a more personal description of my birthday, but I’ve had emotions all over the place about turning 30. So this one is for any 29 year olds out there who are stressing over the big birthday coming up. It’s all going to be great!
First, Thirty is way BETTER than Twenty-One
There is a large significance to exiting your 20’s and entering your 30’s. Many people celebrate in a big way, because it represents a new stage of life and adulthood. But don’t anticipate to necessarily feel different. I woke up on May 14th as a 30 year old, and I didn’t feel any older than 29. I hope that continues as I age!
My 22nd Birthday!
I don’t have it all figured out, and no one should expect to at the age of 30. If you do, congratulations that’s honestly amazing! But also unrealistic for people to assume an age, or a birthday, will somehow grant you that clarity.
23rd Birthday!
What it does feel like for me is that I finally know what is important in life. I know what my goals are. What I want and what I need. Who I love and will drop everything for. I know what matters the most.
25th Birthday!
After 30 years in my skin, I’ve never felt better. I’m not perfect, and I don’t have it all. There are things I’m working on and working towards. But I feel happy, I feel fulfilled, and I feel confident.
But just a few months ago I started writing my thoughts down about turning 30. And at that time the pressure of what this new decade meant made me critically analyze my life and whether I had achieved the things I wanted to by the age of 30.
26th Birthday!
I don’t know why as a society we torture and pressure ourselves to accomplish things by a certain age. For example; to buy a home, get married, have a great job and make lots of money, have children. I know that I have a beautiful life, and I’m so happy, but I don’t have all of these things and who knows what the future will bring.
I had never feared this milestone, and I optimistically figured that life just keeps getting better and better. But my feelings just a few months ago weren’t there and I started having a bit of an internal panic! I felt stuck, static in my career, and unsure of what was next for me. I was anxious watching people around me make big moves and find amazing success both personally and professionally. I felt like I hadn’t done something bold or brave in a while, and I didn’t want to start believing it was too late.
My 29th Birthday! In the panny
WELL, for whoever needs to hear this: it’s never too late and what’s meant to be will be. I heard this advice numerous times over the last year, and it was hard to believe it. But things do have a way of falling in place, and after months of searching, the right job opportunity came along. Even though I didn’t snap my fingers and suddenly have the life I imagined I would have at 30 years old, I can’t deny the pride I felt for taking a leap.
And finally, the 30th Birthday!!
Life is unpredictable, and the past few weeks have thrown me some curve balls. I didn’t know that I would be changing jobs then, or that my dog would get sick unexpectedly. My birthday was a bit all over the place for these reasons, and I celebrated a bunch of different times with various groups of people. The result was unexpected and truly wonderful!
First, we partied like its 2019!
We are coming out of the pandemic, and people are ready to celebrate life again. You don’t need an excuse, but birthdays are definitely a good one! With that, I think it’s the right time to share that I basically had 1 full week of celebrations…. Feel a bit like a diva - I swear I’m done now!!!
The weekend kicked off with a Friday full of pampering before taking engagement photos in Central Park. Nails, haircut, and Glamsquad for makeup before getting all dressed up! After the photos my bestie Hannah arrived as she was staying with me through the weekend. We went to dinner, had lots of wine & fun!
Saturday was the party! I had such an amazing time celebrating with my friends. The original plan was for a picnic in Central Park with both my family and friends, hoping people would feel comfortable if we were outdoors. I gathered with a few friends in the park last year and it was so much fun! Even though I had imagined doing something cool and different for my 30th, I thought it was the best way to organize a safe gathering.
The weather had other plans, and there were going to be storms all day long. So we decided to gather a smaller group of people at my apartment instead!
The week before Ryan and were having a margarita at our favorite local bar and in talking to the management we realized that we could use a space at the bar on Saturday night. So after having drinks and snacks at our apartment that afternoon we walked up the street to The Gem Saloon and got to have an amazing private gathering there!
People casually stopped by the bar, and it was the first night since early 2020 that finally felt NORMAL! Epic group of people, and I had the most amazing time.
The next week I went home to spend time with my family who unfortunately couldn’t be there. It ended up being a really nice relaxing time between jobs spent hanging with family and my beloved dog Bailey who is sick.
On Thursday night my parents surprised me with an amazing dinner at one of our favorite restaurants, X2O. It was an amazing meal, and even though my siblings had to stay home with our dog, I appreciated the rare time with just my Mom and Dad.
The morning of my birthday I woke up to a face full of kisses from Bailey at 7am. My Mom made our family an amazing breakfast before work started for everyone, and I ended up having a lovely day by myself. I went for a run, got my nails done, sat in the sunshine and read my book for a little before getting ready for my best friend Meredith’s wedding weekend!
I got to have a nice lunch with my favorite people before heading up to Connecticut for Meredith’s rehearsal dinner. We first met at the church in New Canaan and then had a beautiful rehearsal dinner with the entire bridal party at a great restaurant in Norwalk. It was so fun to be with my best friends, Ryan, and her family who I love all while celebrating a lifelong friend kick off the big weekend!
The dinner ended at 8pm so after that we checked into our hotel in Norwalk for the weekend, and grabbed some drinks with my best friend Mel and her boyfriend at a local bar. It was the perfect way to end my birthday!
Mere is the sweetest friend, and she had the restaurant bring out a cake for my birthday.
Saturday morning the bridal party made our way to Meredith’s parents house to get ready! We spent the morning getting our hair and makeup done, sipping champagne, and getting excited about the day ahead. It was truly one for the books!!
The wedding was absolutely amazing from start to finish. Meredith was the most stunning bride, and you could feel the couples love and joy through every moment! The venue was beautiful and the band was insanely good. Not only was Ryan there, but also my parents! As well as my best friends parents and families too. We were surrounded by such a fun group! We ate, we drank, we danced, and we laughed so hard.
I got to spend the day with some of my favorite people in the world. And I got to watch someone I love have the happiest day of her life! It was absolutely magical.
On Sunday my family planned on throwing me a surprise birthday gathering with some of my cousins at our house. But since we need to keep Bailey’s excitement levels down, we decided to do a smaller get together so only my Grandma and Aunt Susan came over. Even though it was small, my family still decorated as if it was a huge party - totally over the top but so sweet.
We had a great cheese board and appetizers, and a delicious filet mignon dinner. And I spent all day with Bailey.
My family went above and beyond to make this celebration so special, and it was such a great day. I love these goofy, silly, loving and sweet crew.
Lastly, I felt so loved by my friends and family who spoiled me with presents that were extremely thoughtful. My people truly know me so well!
I could not be more grateful for the amazing people around me. I feel so loved.
These have been some of the craziest weeks of my life. I’ve felt this crash of joy and grief that’s been difficult to manage at times. But I’ve also gained a new renewed appreciation. I’ve been able to sit and reflect on the things I have as a reminder and it’s filled me with a new sense of gratefulness, respect, understanding, love and humility.
This birthday has been mostly so memorable because of all the amazing ways the people I love have shown their love for me. And that’s why I like birthdays! It’s a chance to gather. To celebrate. To hug. To laugh. To say I love you and how important someone is to you. Life is short and we should celebrate the good in it.
Thank you to everyone near and far who reached out or has celebrated with me this year. It’s been a birthday for the books and I’m so grateful.
Xx Gab